Globe CEO, Matt Hill, Interview

Over the course of three decades, riding techniques advance, hardware and equipment progress, brands come and go – to a point where the entire practice of riding a board fundamentally changes into something new. Case in point: In 1983, Rodney Mullen popped the first ollie kickflip on flat ground. Thirty years later, Chris Haslam can 360 flip out of an ollie blunt on mini ramp with his eyes closed. It’s a paradigm shift, as if skateboarding has become a whole different beast in those years.

When a board sports company not only survives but evolves and prospers for that long, it’s the exception, not the rule in a business where the average lifespan of a company is closer to three years – not thirty. But almost exactly 30 years ago, international surf and skateboard company Globe had its start as a distribution outfit in a small warehouse in Melbourne, Australia. Today, their products are sold in over 100 countries – and Rodney Mullen helps design their trucks and next-generation board constructions!

Globe’s CEO Matt Hill speaks on the past and future of the influential board sports brand from the Land Down Under. The 43-year-old, who grew up as a skateboarder and filmmaker, knows Globe like hardly anyone else. Asked how long he’s been with the company, Hill said: “A lifetime!” And that’s not an understatement…

At the age of 15, Matt Hill helped unloading the first shipment of skateboards ever received by Globe’s predecessor, Hardcore Enterprises, the distribution company founded by his older brothers, Peter and Stephen Hill in 1984. Working his way up from the warehouse, Hill applied himself in all segments of the company, including sales, marketing, and events. In 1995, he moved to the U.S. to attend the Masters program at USC Cinema Television School and establish the freshly launched Globe brand’s U.S. operations with fellow Australian Gary Valentine.